Harrison Among Stars To Honor Bob Dylan

Finally,a Chance To Toast Dylan

October 11, 1992|By ROGER CATLIN; Courant Rock Critic

Half-century markers seem to be the big milestones in rock 'n' roll as the once-teenage genre pushes into middle-age. The '50s, after all, was when the form began to coalesce and it is the 50th birthday that we celebrate for such heroes as Paul McCartney, Jerry Garcia, and, posthumously, John Lennon and Elvis Presley.

Columbia Records dropped the ball when Bob Dylan, one of the most influential figures of the 20th century, not just rock history, turned 50 last year while continuing to tour incessantly.

Suddenly the label has put together a huge concert in New York City Friday to mark the 30th anniversary of his first record there -- a benchmark that's no big deal even to his fans, a secondhand way of saying "we forgot to mark the silver anniversary" five years ago (a phenomenon seen in the overpriced packaging of the Beatles EPs this fall to honor the 30th anniversary of their first release).

Nonetheless, a head-spinning number of rock luminaries has agreed to participate in the event, which, not surprisingly, sold out in 70 minutes and spun out into a huge international pay-per-view event.

There's George Harrison, in his first U.S. concert appearance in 16 years; there's top touring attraction Eric Clapton; there's Tom Petty, with whom Dylan toured in '86; Neil Young; John Mellencamp; probably Bruce Springsteen -- and even Dylan himself.

At one time that revelation would have been the most appetizing to fans -- a live show by the man, the myth! But after a career as a recluse and mystery man, Dylan has been constantly touring with only small breaks for something like five years straight. Anybody who has had the smallest notion to see him has certainly had an opportunity. In Connecticut and western Massachusetts alone last year, there were four such shows by Dylan and his tireless trio; before the end of the month he will play three more times in the area -- in Storrs, New Haven and Springfield.

The Madison Square Garden date not only convenes in a concert for the first time most of the Traveling Wilburys (Dylan's only commercial success of the past decade or two), it also brings to

mind that most of the major players also performed together in the same building at the Bangladesh concert, probably the first of the huge benefit concerts that have become a staple of rock.

Some may argue that the Monterey Pop Festival, rightfully celebrating with pride its 25th anniversary this year, was the first multirock artist benefit concert. But the fact it was a benefit was not the overriding reason for the artists, or the audience, to be there.

Conversely, The Concert for Bangla Desh, as it was originally called (the country was so new, the two parts of its name had not yet joined together), was in form and content a plea for funds for the famine and war-scarred former section of Pakistan -- as specifically stated in the hit single organizer George Harrison released.

On stage for the big event Aug. 1, 1971 (there were two shows) were Harrison and Clapton, Ringo Starr, newly hot Leon Russell, Billy Preston as well as the entire lineup of Badfinger, and well down the list, future Wilburys drummer Jim Keltner.

But what made the event magical, by most accounts, is when Harrison announced "and now, here's a friend of us all, Bob Dylan."

It was Dylan's first appearance on a stage since his legendary show at England's Isle of Wight n 1969.

Dylan's notoriety as the high priest of rock poetry, combined with a mysterious motorcycle accident in 1966 that made him a recluse in Woodstock, N.Y., shot the songwriter's already inflated myth to stratospheric heights.

He had rehearsed "If Not for You" at the sound check, but Dylan's appearance for those shows were made even more special for fans for the fact he did not sing his latest song, "Watching the River Flow," or even anything from his most recent album, "New Morning." Instead, he chose to bring back some of his strongest '60s material: "A Hard Rain's Gonna Fall," "It Takes a Lot To Laugh, It Takes a Train To Cry," "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Just Like a Woman" -- even the enduring "Blowin' in the Wind" that made his career.

When he first met with Harrison about the Bangladesh concert, doing that song seemed like an impossibility, according to Phil Spector, who produced the live recording. When Harrison asked him to sing "Blowin' in the Wind," Dylan snarled back: "Are you gonna sing `I Wanna Hold Your Hand'?"

Dylan's contribution covered one whole side of the eventual three-record set resulting from the event. Only Harrison sang more songs (Clapton, merely a superstar member of the band, never stood in the foreground to sing lead).

So rare was a public outing for Dylan that the photos of him taken at the event not only adorned the booklet for the Bangla Desh album, which took the Grammy as rock album of the year, but also were featured on Dylan's own "Greatest Hits Vol. II" shortly afterward.